A man from Las Cruces, New Mexico, has appeared in federal court after allegedly using Molotov cocktails to set fires at an apartment complex. According to court documents, the incident occurred on January 12, 2026, when the Las Cruces Fire Department responded to a fire at Villa Del Telshor Apartments. Investigators determined that the fire started in a second-floor apartment and was intentionally set with an improvised incendiary device.
Surveillance footage captured Richard Sepulveda, age 47 and a resident of the first floor of the complex, carrying two bottles upstairs just before a bright flash appeared from above. The video also showed Sepulveda returning downstairs holding one lit Molotov cocktail and accidentally starting another smaller fire on the first floor, which he then extinguished.
Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) reviewed the footage on January 13 and confirmed Sepulveda’s identity using lease records and driver’s license photos. They also found that he was not registered to possess or manufacture such devices. A search warrant executed on January 15 led agents to recover shoes with burn marks matching those seen in the video, multiple lighters, and Miller High Life bottle caps similar to those used for making Molotov cocktails.
Sepulveda is charged with possessing a destructive device that was not registered as required by federal law. He remains detained pending trial; no date has been set. If convicted, he faces up to ten years in prison.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison stated: “An indictment or criminal complaint is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.” Shawn Stallo, Acting Special Agent in Charge of ATF’s Phoenix Field Division, joined Ellison in announcing these charges.
The case is being investigated by ATF with support from the Las Cruces Fire Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Grant Gardner is prosecuting.
